All the ‘Surprise and Shine’ Release Dates, Visualized

09 Sep 2026, 18:40 by By Federico Viticci

At today’s Surprise and Shine event, Apple announced a lot of dates. Most of the new hardware arrives on September 18, but the brand new iPhone Duo won’t launch until October. Before then, Apple’s next round of major OS updates arrives on September 14.

Here’s a rundown of the preorder, release, and rollout dates. Later today on MacStories, John and I will be sharing detailed overviews of all the major announcements from today, and you can expect our annual OS reviews to be published – as always – next week.

As a bonus, check out the calendar widget we’ve prepared to visualize all of Apple’s release notes. Stay tuned for more of these on MacStories today: we’re going to have some fun with our coverage this year.

iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max

Pre-Orders: Saturday, September 12, 2026, at 5:00 a.m. Pacific / 8:00 a.m. Eastern

In Stores and Deliveries: Friday, September 18, 2026

According to Apple’s announcement, the initial launch covers more than 65 countries and regions. Availability expands to 20 additional countries and regions on Friday, September 25.

iPhone Duo

Pre-Orders: Friday, October 16, 2026, at 5:00 a.m. Pacific / 8:00 a.m. Eastern

In Stores and Deliveries: Friday, October 23, 2026

iPhone Duo launches in more than 70 countries and regions, with 28 additional countries and regions following on Friday, October 30. It ships with iOS 27.1. Apple’s iPhone Duo Case and iPhone Duo Folio with Kickstand will be available to order on October 16, too.

Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4

Pre-Orders: Today, Wednesday, September 9, 2026

In Stores and Deliveries: Friday, September 18, 2026

Both Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 follow the same schedule. The new Apple Watch bands are also available to order today and arrive in stores on September 18.

AirPods 5

Pre-Orders: Today, Wednesday, September 9, 2026

In Stores: Friday, September 18, 2026

The dates apply to both AirPods 5 and AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case, launching in the U.S. and more than 65 other countries and regions.